Time to say goodbye to Tokyo. This blog post will be about Tottori, which is kind of a second “home” for me in Japan. So this beautiful prefecture is located in the Chugoku region and is the least populous prefecture in Japan. Can you imagine, that the last Starbucks has been opened here? Three years ago, Tottori was the one and only prefecture, who didn’t have any Starbucks!! I think it is not a popular touristic place like Tokyo, Osaka or Kyoto, but it offers still many activities, which I would like to show you in this post. Here are the attractions, which I would recommend:

Tottori Conan Airport
When you come to Tottori by plane, do not rush to your hotel after your arrival. Take a little break and have a look at their special airport (if you are a Conanlover it is a must!). You can meet Detective Conan and his friends at the airport. The town Houkuei in Tottori is the birthplace of Gosho Aoyama – the creator of the famous Anime Detective Conan – so that’s the reason why you will meet and see Conan around Tottori.

Izumo-Taisha Grand Shrine
This shrine is actually not an attraction from Tottori, but since it is not that far away, I allowed myself to put it on the to-do-list anyway. The shrine is in the neighbouring prefecture Shimane and from Tottori it takes around 2,5 hours by car (~3 hours by train). It is one of the most famous and the most powerful shrine of love and relationships that you can find in Japan. It might be the reason, why my love life changed positively after visiting this shrine lol.

Aeon Mall
People who have been to Japan will probably recognise this shopping mall. There are everywhere in Japan. I love shopping at Aeon, they have lots of different shops, restaurants, cafes and most of them also have a little game center. I could spend a whole day here.

Tottori Sand Dunes
Tottori is probably most famous and well known because of its sand dunes. It is not that big, but it is a must-visit for every tourist. You can go sandboarding, you can ride on camels or just have a walk on the sand dune. Did you know that in November 2017, there was a event with Pokémon Go?!

Pink Curry at Oenokian
I never thought that pink curry comes from Tottori! The curry tastes as good as the ordinary one but the colour is PINK! You can order it at the Oenokian restaurant. If you like, you can buy the curry sauce mix (or pink soya sauce) so you can make and enjoy your pink curry at home.

Oenosato Coco Garden
If you ever visit Tottori, do not go home before you eat the world’s best pancakes!!!!!!! (It is the best pancake I ever had in my entire life, no one can beat their pancakes, I am serious). The dough is so fluffy, which immediately melts in your mouth. They take importance on organic products and use eggs from their own farm. The “tamago kake gohan” (raw egg with rice) is also amazingly delicious.

So how to get there? The best way is to take the train from Tottori main station to Koge Yazu (~30-40 minutes) and take the 100 Yen bus (~15 minutes) until the station called “Oenosato Shizen Bokujou”. The restaurant is called Coco Garden.

Kakashi Center
There is a village in Tottori – Koge Yazu – which is famous for its Kakashi dolls (scarecrow). If you are visiting Coco Garden anyway, you can have a walk in this little village and you will meet these dolls on every corner. Unfortunately, you cannot visit the “birthplace” of the dolls (I had special access because of my granny) – but you never know if this is going to change in the future.

Furthermore, there are still other activities you can do, for example like visiting the Conan Town and Conan Museum (Gosho Aoyama Manga Factory). If you like to see Japanese supernatural monsters (Yokai) from Gegege no Kitaro, you need to go to the Mizuki Shigeru Road. I will post about it in the next blog entry. The Kannon-in temple is also famous. Have you ever watched Rurouni Kenshin? There is a part, which has been filmed at the Jinpūkaku (Western-style French Renaissance style residence of the Ikeda clan), which is also worth a visit. Separate blog post will follow soon. If like to do a little sightseeing in Tottori, I recommend you to take the Kururi bus (red, blue and green bus) from Tottori main station. It passes not all, but some of the attractions near the station and you pay only 100 Yen per ride.

Ready to take offbye bye Tokyo… Fuji-san Welcome to Tottori Conan Airport You can dress up if you like lol This is home!! My granny loves crafting!~Sightseeing~
Use the 100 Yen bus (Kururi) from Tottori main station.
Check out the routes (blue, green, red) before entering the bus

~Izumo-Taisha, Izumo, Shimane~
Family trip to the most powerful love shrine!

Izumo-Taisha Grand Shrine in Shimane Prefecture is considered the ultimate shrine of love and relationships of all kinds (business partners, friendships, etc). In case your romance has not worked out, this shrine is also supposed to be a place for healing from pain and heartbreak. Source: jnto.go.jp I actually didn’t pray for love, but it didn’t take long
and I seriously met my soulmate after one year ^^
Destiny or was it the power of the love god?~Aeon Mall~
Shopping with my cousins :)Most important – Purikura!! haha ..and shopping don’t forget to eat ice cream at Baskin Robbins ~Tottori Sand Dunes~
The largest sand dunes in Japan!

You can ride camels if you like ~Eat pink curry at Oenokian~
Ohhh yes, it’s PINK!

~Oenosato Coco garden~
You can find the world’s best pancakes here!!!
I’m not kidding. It is sooo fluffy and delicious.
Don’t go home before you had a stop here =)

~Karaoke~
Not only a must in Tottori but you need to try it at least once
while you are in Japan ^.^Inuyasha Opening~Kakashi Center~
Did you know that Tottori (Koge Yazu)
is quite famous for its Kakashi dolls?Looks actually a bit scary *g* People donate their clothes for the dollsEach one gets a name and is handmade!sorry, this looks scary too hahaThat’s it for now!
Next time I need to visit the Conan Museum…